Last week the NRA released its 2004 Virginia legislative summary, and according to the gun lobby, "The 2004 legislative session was a banner year for gun owners in the Commonwealth of Virginia? Never before have so many improvements been made to Virginia's gun laws in a single year". The report describes a dozen or so bills that made technical changes to Virginia's concealed handgun permit law and several other bills that repealed old provisions of Virginia law dealing with out of date local ordinances covering firearms. Since the passage of Virginia's instant background check law and restrictions on the sale of more than one handgun per month, Virginia localities have either repealed local restrictions or declined to enforce the out of date ordinances. Most of these bills were so insignificant that Virginian's Against Handgun Violence (VAHV) did not oppose the concept of cleaning up Virginia's weapons control law.

The real story behind the 2004 legislative session can be found in the positive advances made in Richmond in the name of gun safety. Looking beyond mere technical amendments to current law that the NRA trumpets and focusing on the real legislative advances in gun safety signed into law by Governor Warner it becomes clear that 2004 was truly a "banner year" for gun safety advocates in Virginia.

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Improvements To Keep Virginia Schools Safe.
HB 1117 (Weatherholtz)-School board policies prohibiting firearms. Authorizes school divisions to establish disciplinary policies prohibiting the possession of firearms on school property, school buses, and at school-sponsored activities by students, and authorizes school divisions to take disciplinary actions against students who violate such policies.

Improvements To Keep Virginia Airports Safe.
SB 660 (Stolle)-Guns in airports. Provides that it is a crime for any person to possess or transport into any airport terminal in the Commonwealth any gun or other dangerous weapon, including explosives, tasers, stun weapons and those other weapons specified in the Virginia Code. This prohibition does not apply to law-enforcement officers or a passenger of an airline who transports a lawful firearm, weapon or ammunition checked in his or her luggage as provided by federal law. The bill provides that any other statute, rule, regulation or ordinance concerning the possession or transportation of weapons in airports in the Commonwealth is invalid. This new law will prohibit concealed weapons permit holders and others from abusing a loophole in Virginia law and bringing guns and other weapons into airports.

Improvements In Virginia's Concealed Handgun Statute.
HB 215 (Athey)-Mandatory training for concealed weapons permit applicants. This new law mandates that all applicants for a concealed handgun permit demonstrate "competence with a handgun" before a permit can be issued or renewed. Currently, all concealed handgun permit holders are registered in a central database with the state police before the license to carry is issued. However, there is no requirement in the law that permit applicants have any knowledge of how to use a gun prior to being granted permission to carry a handgun. With the passage of HB 215, at the very least, Virginians will now know that those individuals who feel it necessary to strap on a concealed handgun will have to demonstrate some form of competency with handgun before the permit is issued.

Improvements In Keeping Guns Out of the Wrong Hands.
HB 79 (Wright)-Possession or transportation of firearms by certain persons. Provides that a person who is not a citizen and is not lawfully present in the United States shall be subject to punishment as a Class 6 felon for possession of any firearm. Currently, the law prohibits the possession of an assault weapon by any person who is not a citizen of the United States or who is not a person lawfully admitted for permanent residence. This provision was passed following the terrorist shooting outside CIA headquarters in January of 1993. Now, Virginia law enforcement officers confronted by individuals armed with any type of firearm who are not legally in the country can lawfully make an arrest.

Improvements in Stopping Illegal Gun Trafficking.
SB 320 (Stolle)- Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organization (RICO) Act created. Creates a RICO act for Virginia under which various violations of criminal statutes, including illegal gun trafficking, become "racketeering crimes". Racketeering is punished as a felony with confinement of 5-40 years and a fine of not more than $1 million. A second or subsequent offense is a Class 2 felony and a fine of not more than $2 million. Currently, "bad apple" dealers, and manufacturers who conspire to sell guns to "straw purchasers" or others prohibited from acquiring guns can only be convicted of a class six felony. With SB 320, the state can now go after the assets and illegal profits of "bad apple" gun dealers and traffickers.

Other Improvements In Public Safety.
Several other bills designed to make Virginia safer were enacted despite the gun lobby's opposition. These include SB 633 (Saslaw), HB 167 (Albo) and HB 360 (Miles).

Who Is The Gun Lobby Protecting?
The NRA legislative report also boasts about how certain gun safety proposals were defeated in the name of "advancing the rights of gun owners". Lets take a look at the bills they "killed" and the type of "gun owners" they were protecting. They cite the following bills:

HB 1035, and HB 1247, sponsored by Delegates James Scott and Adam Ebbin. These bills would have banned possession of firearms following a conviction of "stalking" or "sexual battery". I guess those NRA members in Virginia who have been convicted of "stalking" and "sexual battery" can breath easy and not worry that over zealous law enforcement will interfere with their ability to keep and bear arms.

SB 48, sponsored by Senator Henry Marsh, would have required background checks on private gun sales at gun shows. The year Senator Marsh's bill made it to the Senate floor with support from the leadership of both parties. However, NRA misled legislators by quoting a questionable out date survey of convicted felons to reason that illegal gun trafficking at Virginia gun shows was not a problem. The hobby gun dealers at Virginia gun shows who trade on the edge of the law can also breath a sigh of relief.

SB 552, sponsored by Senator Janet Howell, would have prohibited the carry of loaded firearms in bars and restaurants where alcoholic beverages are served. As the NRA website advises "guns and alcohol don't mix". Currently, Virginia law forbids concealed handgun permit holders from carrying their guns into such establishments. The Virginia "open carry law" however, allows guns to be worn openly as long as the proprietor of the drinking establishment allows such activity. As Phil Van Cleve, President of the Virginia Citizens Defense League, advised the Washington Times recently, if permit holders want to drink wine with their meal, they have to carry their guns openly. Well Phil, next time you take your family out for a nice meal at the local Red Lobster with your shiny new Smith & Wesson 500 magnum strapped to your leg, I guess the authorities will have to look the other way when you order that magnum of fine California Cabernet.

VAHV Working To Protect Virginians.
VAHV had a very successful year stopping several irresponsible and dangerous legislative proposals sponsored by the gun lobby and we succeeded in forcing amendments to other bills that would have created dangerous loopholes in Virginia law.

SB 579 (Cuccinelli)- Concealed weapons; abolishes prohibition on carrying hanguns in a restaurant or club. This was the Virginia Citizens Defense League (VCDL) highest legislative priority for the 2004 legislative session. It was an annual attempt to allow concealed handgun permit holders to carry hidden handguns in a bar or restaurant. This measure nearly passed in 2003 and was barely stopped on a tie vote in a Senate committee. The following excerpt from a VCDL Action Alert says it all:

"01/27/04 - URGENT! Restaurant Ban Repeal IS A GO!

GREAT NEWS everyone! I have in hand Senator Cuccinelli's substitute bill for the restaurant ban repeal and it's just what we wanted! It is a substitute bill that will replace SB597 in its entirety. Gone is all the bad, convoluted, confusing language. It now says that we can carry concealed in a restaurant or club that serves alcohol as long as we are not consuming. (To consume you will have to carry openly as you have to do now consuming or not.)

URGENT ACTION!

THIS is where the rubber meets the road ladies and gentlemen. If we really fight hard for this, I think we stand a real chance of getting the repeal. BUT we must really go after it, no fooling around. I'm ready to win this after all these years - how about YOU?

We have only one short week before this bill is heard in committee. VCDL is gearing up for a huge mailing, but there are 2,400 of you on this alert list and if all of you respond, that will be a huge push.

THIS IS GOING TO BE A REAL FIGHT AND I AM COUNTING ON YOU -

The gun lobby was caught off guard when VAHV led the fight against this dangerous bill and the measure was soundly defeated in the Senate Courts of Justice committee on a 10 to 3 bipartisan vote. Senator Cuccinelli was so discouraged after the vote that he told constituents at a local town hall meeting that he WOULD NOT reintroduce the measure next year.

HB 1482 (McDonnell)- Explosives; excludes small arms ammunition or components.
Amends the definition of explosive to exclude small arms ammunition or components thereof that are packaged in the manufacturer's original packaging. The bill also provides that the Fire Prevention Code does not apply to the handling, storage or sale by a licensed firearms dealer of small arms ammunition or components thereof packaged in the manufacturer's original packaging. This was introduced to help firearm dealers who sell smokeless powder and ammunition reloading components at gun shows avoid local fire code licensing restrictions. According to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, smokeless powder is the most popular explosive used in making illegal pipe bombs. This bill would have tied the hands of Virginia's first responders, local fire departments, police and sheriffs who are primarily responsible for homeland security. The measure was killed in the Senate Courts of Justice committee on a bipartisan 7 to 6 vote.

HB 1372 (Janis)-Product liability; products containing open and obvious dangers. Exempts manufacturers or sellers from liability for claims of injury due to voluntary use of a product containing open and obvious dangers, and directly caused by the open and obvious dangers of that product. Such products are limited to (i) food products made with sugar, butter or hydrogenated oils or trans fats, (ii) tobacco, or (iii) firearms. Excludes from the exemption actions based on manufacturing defects or breach of an express warranty. This bill was the gun lobby's attempt to give gun manufacturers sweeping immunity from product liability lawsuits. The bill was crushed in the Senate Courts of Justice committee on 14 to 1 vote.

Successful Amendments
VAHV was successful in forcing amendments to key legislative proposals supported by the gun lobby. The following bills were effectively neutralized by VAHV supported amendments.

HB 186 (Black) Firearms; transfer by persons with a concealed handgun permit. Provides that a holder of a valid permit to carry a concealed weapon need not submit to a criminal background check to buy, rent, trade or receive a firearm from a dealer. Provisions of the bill would also allow the holder of a concealed handgun permit to purchase more than one handgun within a 30-day period. The author dropped the background check exemption provision of this bill, and the multiple purchase provision was incorporated into HB 404.

HB 404 (Janis)-One gun a month. Allows the holder of a valid Virginia concealed-carry permit to purchase more than one handgun a month. The bill also allows a person to purchase more than one handgun a month if purchased through a private sale. This bill would have created a huge hole in Virginia's highly successful one-gun-a-month law. After amendments, the bill does virtually nothing to change existing law. Gun owners who have concealed handgun permits are already registered into the State Police statewide computer database and are licensed. According to the State Police these individuals made up the vast majority of those who sought and were granted licenses to purchase multiple guns under current law. In addition, collectors of curio and relic firearms were arguably all ready exempt from one-gun-a-month. Gun traffickers rarely trade in curios and relics.